How do I register to vote for a general election?

Campaigners from the Vote For Your Future initiative. Photograph: Twitter. - Credit: Archant

There’s less than a month to register for the general election on Thursday 12th December.

When can I register?

Assuming you are eligible, you can register any time but, be aware, there will be a deadline.

The deadline to register for the last general election was 12 working days before people went to the polls.

With a date set for December 12, the deadline for applying to register to vote is expected to be November 25.

You can even get yourself on the register if you are 16 or 17 but you will have to have turned 18 by election day to actually be eligible to vote.

How do I check if I am already registered?

If you are not sure whether or not you are registered, you should check with your local electoral registration office. You can find the local authority to get in contact with on the Electoral Commission website.

How can I register if I need to?

By visiting the government’s register to vote website and filling out the relevant forms. Alternatively, you can register by post or by proxy, by downloading, printing and posting the forms on the same website.

What if I live abroad?

You can register as an overseas voter for up to 15 years after you left the country, if you are a British citizen and you have been registered to vote in the UK within the last 15 years (or if you were too young to register when you left).

If you are serving in the Armed Forces abroad there is a special form you can fill out on the government’s website.

Likewise if you are a Crown servant and British Council employee working abroad.